South Australia-based Ganbara Facility Services is an Indigenous company, committed to supporting Indigenous economic and workforce participation.

In Barngarla, the language of the Eyre Peninsula and Upper Spencer Gulf people in South Australia, ‘Ganbara’ means fertile soil, supporting its purpose, “To create real opportunities for our people and the communities in which we live, work and play”.

Formed in 2016, in association with its capacity supplier Academy Services, Ganbara offers a suite of services including commercial cleaning, infection control, hygiene and sanitation solutions, and waste and recycling solutions.

The company is headed by newly appointed general manager Marius Liddle. An Arrernte man who grew up in South Australia’s Riverland, Liddle has worked in various governmental roles linked to Indigenous affairs.

These include project management and coordination of service delivery for Indigenous communities, managing employment and training programs that support Indigenous workforce participation and contributing to Indigenous policy development for the improvement of quality of life for Indigenous communities.

Most recently, Liddle has established himself as an Indigenous business consultant specialising in employment and training, business development and promoting Indigenous culture within the workplace.

These skills have been brought to the fore at Ganbara where Liddle has grown cultural competency throughout the organisation, including developing:

• Indigenous employment policies and procedures,
• Cultural leave policies to support employees with their cultural obligations and commitments; and
• Working with site managers to support the growth and development of the Indigenous workforce.

“Ganbara has an underlying commitment to working with Indigenous people and supporting Indigenous capacity development,” says Liddle.

Along with capacity supplier Academy Services, Ganbara a presence in each of the mainland states and territories.

“During COVID-19 we have had to respond and adapt like everyone else. What has helped our team is the support of our partners.

“At Ganbara, we have access to the experiences and learnings of an established facility service company through our capacity supplier, Academy Services, and registered training organisation, Carey Training.”

For Liddle, the focus is on expanding Ganbara’s regional footprint, while also supporting community development and recruitment opportunities.

“At Ganbara, we aim to engage with regional areas, prioritising Indigenous employment and supporting local businesses. Regional economic stimulation needs to be supported at every level and it’s important Ganbara plays a role in this, particularly as these communities are among the hardest hit by COVID,” says Liddle.

Ganbara also procures products from Indigenous businesses including Adelaide-based washroom and cleaning products supplier, Nood Australia.

“We want to continue our commitment to supporting the Indigenous community, such as workforce participation, but also through economic participation, such as engaging with other Aboriginal businesses and utilising their products and services where we can,” says Liddle.

“As the company grows, we will look to diversify our service offering. Commercial cleaning and infection control are the foundations but as we expand, we want to ensure we don’t lose connection to the roots of where we came from, or our purpose.”

This article first appeared in the November/December issue of INCLEAN magazine.

Read the original article here .

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